With just over two weeks remaining in the regular season, there are only a handful of teams that can be considered postseason locks. That exclusive group includes the Washington Nationals, Cincinnati Reds, Texas Rangers, San Francisco Giants and Atlanta Braves (although paranoid Braves fans won’t believe they are in until they actually clinch a wild-card berth).

That leaves more than 10 contenders fighting for their postseason lives. And it creates a heck of an opportunity for heroes to be born. Better yet, it creates an excellent opportunity for redemption. Players who have struggled during the second half or even the entire season can erase all that misery with a strong finish that helps punch their teams’ postseason ticket.

Five such examples—players who have shined in the past, have slumped for weeks (or months) and have the ability to give their teams a much-needed late-season boost:

Josh Beckett, SP, Los Angeles Dodgers

He has been better (3.38 ERA, 24 strikeouts in 24 innings) than most realize in four starts since The Trade, but Beckett is capable of more. And the team needs more. There still is a gaping hole in the Dodgers’ rotation following the season-ending elbow injury to Chad Billingsley, who went 6-0 with a 1.80 ERA in seven second-half starts before his shutdown. And now there is legitimate concern about ace Clayton Kershaw, who might need season-ending hip surgery.

Beckett isn’t the same pitcher in terms of stuff that he was during the 2003 or 2007 postseason, when he came up huge for the then-Florida Marlins and Boston Red Sox, respectively, but he still has the stuff to be effective. What he must do is unleash that bulldog mentality that has been missing for more than a year.

Ivan Nova, SP, New York Yankees

For whatever reason—perhaps injury, fatigue or age, or a combination of the three—CC Sabathia isn’t pitching on an ace level. The Yankees don’t need Nova to assume that No. 1 starter role, but they need him to pitch like he did in June (3-0, 1.26 ERA in five starts) and not like he has pitched in every other month (his combined ERA in April, May, July and August is 5.99).

In his first start since returning from shoulder inflammation, Nova was thrown directly into the fire Saturday afternoon against the Rays. And he responded with six innings of two-run ball and eight strikeouts. A 16-game winner who posted a 3.70 ERA last season and started Game 2 of the ALDS, Nova is capable of providing the lift this rotation needs. New York can’t expect 40-year-old Andy Pettitte to return in top form after not debuting until mid-May and not starting since late June.

Carlos Beltran, RF, St. Louis Cardinals

He was an MVP candidate and an All-Star during the first half. In fact, Beltran was outproducing Albert Pujols, the man he unofficially replaced in the Cardinals’ offense this season. However, an extended slump that can be blamed partially on nagging injuries has resulted in Beltran basically becoming a part-time player.

Since July 1, Beltran is batting .211 (48-for-227) with nine homers and 26 RBIs in 61 games. In the first three months of the season, he had a .310-20-61 line in 75 games. There isn’t much he can do about his aches and pains, but Beltran must deliver when he is in the lineup.

Alex Avila, C, Detroit Tigers

Why have the Tigers fallen so short of expectations this season? It is no fault of the big bats, as third baseman Miguel Cabrera and first baseman Prince Fielder have done what was expected of them. By contrast, many of the hitters who played key supporting roles last season have seen their production decline precipitously. Avila is poster boy for that group.

After setting career highs in batting average (.295), homers (19), RBIs (82), on-base percentage (.389) and slugging percentage (.506) last season and making his first All-Star team, Avila is hitting about 50 points lower with roughly half as many homers and RBIs. And his slugging percentage isn’t bordering on .400. His 3-for-4 afternoon Saturday was a nice sign. Detroit has front-line pitching but it needs a jolt from the bottom-third of its lineup. And Avila can provide it.

Matt Joyce, RF, Tampa Bay Rays

While Friday night’s six-run outburst was encouraging, the Rays’ offensive inconsistency is the primary reason their playoff hopes are in jeopardy. In seven of their past eight losses, they have scored two or fewer runs. Manager Joe Maddon summed it up perfectly after Thursday’s 14-inning loss at Baltimore, a game in which Tampa Bay squandered numerous opportunities to score.

First baseman Carlos Pena isn’t going to snap out of his season-long funk, and third baseman Evan Longoria isn’t 100 percent. That leaves Joyce, a first-time All-Star last season whose slugging percentage and run production have dropped dramatically this season, as a prime candidate for a late-season run. Trouble is, he is hitting just .220 with four homers and 18 RBIs in the second half (compared to .279-11-34 before the break).